1. Field of the Invention (Technical Field)
The present invention relates to recreational facilities.
2. Background Art
Until recent years recreational facilities with rinks, especially ice rinks, were few in number and found mostly in states bordering the northern extremities of the United States. Most of these facilities operated on a seasonal basis, attracting a seasonal crowd. Many of these facilities were government owned and operated.
Recreational facilities with rinks suffer from a common problem; due to size most facilities feature only one rink. Recently, a few double rink facilities have been built to handle the increased participation stemming from the Olympics and television publicity. Many of the new double rink facilities have been located in existing warehouse buildings due to the size of the building needed and cost to design and build a brand new facility.
Recreational facilities with rinks, especially ice rinks, are dependent on three major venues for revenue, plus a number of minor ones. The three venues are public entertainment skating, ice hockey, and figure skating.
These venues are all incompatible, i.e., require exclusive use of a rink. When one venue occupies the rink, other venues are "locked out." As a facility gains success, these events typically experience an increase in duration. A major hockey tournament or figure skating competition can last several days. In addition, venues often require the primetime hours from 5 PM to 10 PM due to the school and work schedules of their participants.
These two problems are stifling to the growth of rink-based recreational facility venues. They can only be solved by additional surfaces and/or rinks.
Additionally, public skating, the highest revenue generator, is dependent on skater enjoyment so that each skater returns as often as possible. Skating in the same oval, over and over again, loses its enjoyment too quickly. Only a change of directions is possible to break skater monotony. As a result, frequent visits by non-dedicated skaters are difficult to maintain. There is also a need to enhance the aesthetic presentation of recreational facilities to increase customer enjoyment.
The following patents disclose subject matter related to ice rink configurations. U.S. Pat. No. 4,497,483, entitled "Device for dividing ice-hockey rinks," to Ahlgren, discloses a device for dividing an ice hockey rink into at least two smaller rink parts. U.S. Pat. No. 4,038,834, entitled "Ice skating arena, to Roberts, discloses a plurality of ice rinks and interconnecting bridging sections having movable barriers. U.S. Pat. No. 3,379,031, entitled "Artificial ice rink employing modular units," to Lewis, discloses individual ice module units that may be linked to form a larger ice surface. U.S. Pat. No. 2,766,046, entitled "Combination swimming pool, skating rink and exhibition floor," to Skrainka, discloses an arena that can be used alternately as a swimming pool, a skating rink, or an exhibition center.
The following patents disclose subject matter related to energy efficiency. U.S. Pat. No. 5,536,411, entitled "Water and energy recovery process for an ice rink," to Blades, discloses a water and energy recovery process for an ice rink. U.S. Pat. No. 4,301,788, entitled "Solar water reclamation system," to Hummel, discloses an energy saving system for reclaiming waste water from ice shavings wherein waste water melt is sprayed upon the ice shavings to promote further melting. U.S. Pat. No. 3,990,260, entitled "Low-temperature dehumidifier," to Eustis, discloses a low temperature dehumidifier for use with ice rink enclosures.
The following patent relates to movable partitions to divide rooms. U.S. Pat. No. 3,107,400, entitled "Movable wall partition," to Anderson, discloses movable wall sections to increase or decrease the size of a room.
None of the aforementioned references disclose a system of corridors and rinks wherein the corridors comprise stand-alone, usable surfaces for ice skating and other activities.